Richard Pryor - Richard Pryor: ...And It's Deep Too! The Complete Warner Bros. Recordings (1968-1992)
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Free Music Notes for Richard Pryor: ...And It's Deep Too! The Complete Warner Bros. Recordings (1968-1992)
Free Music Review: A gem
Hit: 5 Stars
The best comedy purchase I've made. Richard Pryor have given us so much. I bought one for my brother's birthday too. Never gets stale.Free Music Review: great purchase
Hit: 5 Stars
This was a great purchase and smooth transaction. I was very pleased. This was a gift for my father and he loved it.Free Music Review: Everything you hear today can be traced back to Richard
Hit: 5 Stars
Richard Pryor is the funniest man on the face of the earth.Free Music Review: It's his job, I know. Cause that's all he does.
Hit: 5 Stars
Been there, then and done that...Free Music Review: The Liner Notes Almost Say It All
Hit: 4 Stars
I have to preface this review by saying that nobody has more respect and love for Richard Pryor than me, especially with regards to sheer talent. Of all the comedians you could ever think of, he's pretty much the only one whose repetoire merits the box set format. And while we've got a number of reviews that overdose on their own reverence, has anybody actually listened to the discs??? That's what this particular review is about.The main reason I bought this was the reissues--Bicentennial Nigger, That Nigger's Crazy, Wanted, and particularly the first album had never been released on CD, and we had to make do with the sometimes patchy efforts on Straight Cannon records. The packaging is fantastic--though some might be annoyed at the vinyl throwback of the sleeves, and the liner notes are for the most part, very well done.
The first disc is in mono, but it hardly detracts from the material. In each progressive CD you can hear Pryor improving everything about his act, from the politics to the delivery, although to be honest there wasn't much wrong with the delivery from the very beginning.
That Nigger's Crazy improves (mostly) on bits found on the Video 'Live & Smokin' but includes the brilliant "Nigga With a Seizure."
Is it Something I said--refer to my individual review already on Amazon. They made a mistake of adding 'Ali' to this disc, because A) it isn't all that funny, and B) he'd already ended the disc with the perfect finale. It detracts from the rest of the album.
Bicentennial Nigger plays like a continuation of Is it Something I Said, but showcases Richard's political bent somewhat. It's a bit patchier than the first 3 albums, but has some killer moments, especially the Mudbone bit and "Chinese Restaurant."
Wanted: Live in Concert is a bit disappointing, if only because what the liner notes say is true--this is a performance you have to see on video/dvd/whatever, because the visual Richard Pryor is just as funny as the audible. The two combined are amazing; rent Live in Concert the movie and you'll see what I mean.
Live On the Sunset Strip is a good album, but his delivery in the movie version is funnier, for the most part--again, this is a performance that is a bit funnier on the video than the album. Hereafter, Richard forgoes the word "nigger", and his later performances never sound the same again.
Here and Now gets credit for being funnier than it might have been, simply because a drug-free Richard is less potent than his earlier incarnations. But you side-step all that simply because his performance wins you over; bonus star for the interview track tacked on the end of this.
The cream of the crop is the bonus CD--it's chock full of album-worthy material, especially the 70s output. But even on the last track "M.S.", circa 1992, Richard is still a comedian's comedian. Past his peak both physically and creatively, but still able to both perservere AND deliver some strong material. It's worth getting for "Patty Hearst" and "Mudbone Goes to Hollywood (Alternate Version)" alone.
Honestly, you won't be disappointed with this set, even if you already own much of the non-WB material, as I do. It's not perfect, but it's pretty close.